>> reporter: it's an american tradition of more than 100 years, the boy scouts of america. but it's not been for everyone. that could soon change as the iconic institution considers a policy shift that would lift the ban on gay scout leaders and gay scouts themselves. some troop leaders and scouts are gay. they just hide their sexuality. this former eagle scout program director, came out to his scouting friends. >> i served ten years on the ranch staff. and i am gay. >> reporter: for a scout revealed he was day, he would be skiked out. ryan wanted to be an eagle scout after becoming a cub. but after earning the 21 merit badges, he was denied. his father welcomes the change. >> it's about time. one of the scout laws is that you have to be honest and you have to be trustworthy. and these kids were not allowed to do that. >> reporter: jennifer became a den mother when her son became a scout. but she was fired because she was a lesbian.

she started a petition on change.org, calling for a change on the ban on gays. >> we started a firestorm of equality. and i'm excited about it. >> reporter: the proposal the boy scouts of america is considering would give different groups that sponsor scout groups the power to decide whether to continue the ban on gays. some christian conservative groups are enraged. tony perkins called the shift a serious mistake. rob? sunny? >> tahman bradley, in washington. thanks, tahman. and president obama travels to las vegas today to sell his ideas for immigration reform. yesterday, top lawmakers from both parties pledged to get a wide-ranging perform bill through the senate by summer. included in that bill would be a provision to grant legal status to more than 10 million illegal immigrants in this country. senator john mccain concedes it's a critical issue for republicans as support for the party among hispanics has

dropped dramatically. protesters in egypt are defying the government-ordered nighttime curfew and state of emergency. young people battled with police near two, major hotels. abc's lama hasan has just arrived in cairo. >> reporter: it is even when we were driving in from the airport, we saw the remnants of the battle that had been taking place between the protesters and the police force for five-consecutive days. and as soon as we get closer to tahrir square, which is the birthplace of the revolution two years ago, one of the bridges leading into the square has been closed off to all traffic. and as i said, people here are anticipating the violence, to flare-up once again later on in the day. >> at least 60 people have died since the protests began last week and quickly spread to the major cities. there is a search under way off the coast of italy right now

for a u.s. fighter plane that has gone missing. the f-16 was on a training mission and not carrying any weapons when it took off from the air base last night. there was poor visibility due to parkness and the fact it was sleeting at the time. and the navy says the mine sweeper that's been stuck on a reef in the philippines for nearly two weeks is a total loss. so, "the uss guardian" is going to be cut into pieces to avoid further environmental damage. the crew was using charts that had the reef eight miles away. two, big cranes will arrive friday to start taking "the guardian" apart. in brazil, a crowd of mourners marched through the city of santa maria last night, demanding justice for the victims of the nightclub fire. police are demanding answers from the cub's co-owners and two members of the band. many inside the club were doomed by safety violations. there was no fire alarm, no fire escape and no sprinklers.

and back here at home, and a look ahead to the next presidential race, believe it or not. hillary clinton's possible bid for the office is now being backed by a super pac. ready for hillary was registered with the federal election commission just last week. it's being run by a virginia supporter and has no direct connection to clinton herself. three months after hurricane sandy, the senate has approved a $50 billion aid deal. and president obama says he will sign it as soon as it hits his desk. the money will go to residents, businesses and state and local governments trying to rebuild. the measure passed 62-36, with opposition from fiscal conservatives. a wave of mild air is moving into the northeast a day after the area got slammed by a nasty mix of wintry weather. heavy snow made a mess of the roads across maine. driving was also pretty treacherous in parts of pennsylvania, new jersey and new york. as sleet and freezing rain

triggered a string of crashes. it was the opposite, though, in the plains, as temperatures shot up, shattering two dozen record highs from texas to kansas. waco hit 81. it was 77 in topeka. that city's all-time high temperature for the month of january. and today, violent storms from the gulf coast into the midwest, with memphis and little rock expecting the worst of it. a few inches in the upper midwest. also, some showers from seattle to portland. up to a foot of mountain snow in the northwest. milder and foggy with morning drizzle from boston to new york and d.c. >> a couple of near-record highs. 83 in orlando. and 60 in chicago. 20s from billings to fargo. upper 50s from sacramento to phoenix. and when we come back this morning, google maps. where it's never gone before. plus, a major retailer's about-face. good news for bargain-hunters. and barbara's health battle. a surprising diagnosis for our friend and colleague, barbara

walters.

welcome back, everybody. another major union sees clear skies for an american airlines merger. the transport workers union has agreed to terms if the bankrupt carrier merges with u.s. airways, giving its 21,000 ground workers an immediate race if there's a deal. pilots and flight attendants are already onboard. and a decision on the merger is expected in the next few weeks. a gott agency says the treasury department was too generous. it approved all 18 requests for raises for executives at

bailed-out companies like general motors and aig. 14 of those raises were for $100,000 to $2 million. the treasury department says it had to allow the raises for the companies to stay competitive. sales are coming back to jcpenney stores. the company had stopped sales. but buyers didn't buy it and sales dropped. jcpenney says it won't offer as many sales as it once did. and it will show signs for half of its merchandise to show how much customers are saving. and a blank spot has been filled on google maps. north korea. until yesterday, the maps were mostly empty. the new versions show golf courses to detention camps. it used information by ordinary citizens outside the country. north koreans can't access google. and youtube says companies that preview their super bowl commercials on youtube, of course, get better results.

those ads are viewed six-times as often as those who are first seen during the game. the nielsen rating service says the best-remembered ad last year was available online in advance. but the second-most remembered ad was not. >> good morning, kate upton. next on this tuesday morning, an encouraging, new chapter for an iraq vet who lost every one of his limbs in battle. and kaboom. a woman clicks her car remote and her honda explodes. ( birds chirping ) everything's better with a great cup of coffee. exceptionally smooth and perfectly balanced for a harmonious blend of flavor, body and aroma.

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let's get started at capella.edu. i use bounce outdoor fresh sheets because they're just that much fresher and they help keep static off in the cold so my clothes will never embarrass me. mommy, i dressed the snowman! how do you get your bounce? less static year-round. she can't always move the way she wants. now you can. with stayfree ultra thins. flexible layers move with your body while thermocontrol wicks moisture away. keep moving. stayfree. well, it was a fast and furious kind of moment at miami international airport. instead of planes, 12 lamborghinis whizzed through the runway. the italian automaker introduced its latest model by showing it can travel master than a plane at takeoff, easily getting up to

190 miles per hour. and capable of going 217. the price tag, just a mere $445,000. and now, for a look at morning road conditions. a wet commute from seattle to portland. snow-covered highways and mountain passes in the rockies. storms drench roads from texas to illinois. slushy in the upper midwest. slick streets in the northeast. >> and if you're flying today, airport delays are possible in minneapolis, chicago, memphis, dallas, houston, new orleans and salt lake city. and now, for some stunning numbers from the fbi that confirm what the nation's gun dealers have been saying. >> the bureau says it conducted more background checks for firearms sales following the newtown, connecticut, attack than in any single one-week period. and the second-busiest week for background checks was the one following president obama's announcement for his new gun safety proposals. some parents of sandy hook

school victims delivered powerful calls for action to connecticut lawmakers. police were at the hearing, talking about a wide variety of automatic weapons. some parents say the time for change is now. >> the time is now. let the state of connecticut become an agent for change, with respect to gun safety. our little man and every other child and adult who died that day deserve it. >> gun advocates were also at yesterday's hearing. they claim connecticut's gun laws do not need to be changed, therefore affecting those who were not to blame for the newtown tragedy. a woman simply popped her trunk with her remote key. and her car literally blew up. this is all that's left of her 2012 honda civic. amazingly, no one was hurt. the woman's boyfriend had welding tools in that car. so, the fire marshals believe the remote set off a small

electrical charge that ignited vapors from the equipment. two men in northern georgia were arrested for stealing chicken wings. they allegedly used a rental truck to steal frozen tyson chicken wings earlier this month. with a wing shortage going on this super bowl week, police say the street value of the wings stolen was about 65 grand. we're learning new details about a medical procedure for a wounded warrior for new york. brendan marrocco was the first to survive all four limbs in the war. he's the seventh person in the u.s. to undergo such an operation. we'll hear from marrocco at a news conference today. turning to sports news this morning, tiger woods is back to his winning ways. he finished a weather-delayed tournament yesterday, four

strokes ahead of the pack. it was the eighth time he's won at torrey pines in southern california. and now, we have some hoops news. here's espn. >> good morning. cassidy hubbarth here with your "sportscenter" update. a weird finish between the pacers and nuggets. fourth quarter. denver up ten. off the steal. corey brewer gets it to gallinari. now, up 12. under six minutes to go. denver up ten. gallinari for three. he had 27 points in this one. nuggets up 13. later in the fourth. k.c. coming back. the all-star would finish the four-point play. he had 23 points. under two minutes to go. george hill gets a floater to drop. game tied at 99-99. 0.5 left. andre miller, to andre iguodala. and gets the buzzer sounded. iguodala hit a free throw.

the nuggets win 102-101. the new number two team in the country, the kansas jayhawks, looking for their 18th-straight win. taking on west virginia. with the jam. kansas up 11. later, ben mcelmore, he gets the rock and takes it all the way the other way. second half, relaford from the corner. kansas goes on to win 61-56 and improve to 19-1 on the season. i'm cassidy hubbarth. that was your "sportscenter" update. have a good morning. the miami heat had yesterday off. so, they spent some time with president obama. the reigning nba champs were the guest of honor at the white house. they presented mr. obama with an autographed basketball and a jersey. and superstar, lebron james, stole the show. >> am i supposed to say something? >> you can if you want. >> it's your world, man.

i'm in the white house right now. this is like -- hey. mom, i made it. >> nice, genuine moment there. it was the team's first visit to the white house since winning the nba title in 2006. >> the president actually looks short in that group. >> 6'1" president obama. the president doesn't feel short too often. next to lebron, we all do. next, "the pulse." and a brand-new diet coke hunk makes his debut. and a new health scare for barbara walters. but even her co-hosts on "the view" couldn't help but to laugh. [ female announcer ] going to sleep may be easy, but when you wake up in the middle of the night it can be frustrating. it's hard to turn off and go back to sleep. intermezzo is the first and only prescription sleep aid approved for use as needed in the middle of the night when you can't get back to sleep. it's an effective sleep medicine you don't take before bedtime.

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welcome back, everybody. time to check "the pulse," this morning, the stories you'll be talking about today. starting out, actually, with someone near and dear to all of our hearts here at abc. our own barbara walters. >> yes, yes. after being hospitalized for a fall, barbara's doctors now say she has the chickenpox. and perhaps that explains why she couldn't shake that lingering fever. >> while wishing barbara well, her co-hosts on "the view," couldn't resist just a little teasing. >> barbara gets younger and younger. she's like benjamin button. now, she's going to a pediatrician. this is what you get for interviewing honey boo boo. >> barbara was transferred from washington, d.c. to a new york hospital. other than an annoying itch, she seems to be doing well and hopes to go home soon. you don't think someone in her 80s getting chickenpox. but it is possible. we hope that it all turns out well. she's certainly -- >> she's a strong lady. >> that's right.

if she can beat it, we all know that. get well soon, miss walters. diet coke is bringing back the hunk. the iconic brand is introducing british model andrew cooper. who takes a cola can and reveals a six-pack to the tune of edda james singing "i want to make love to you." >> distracted a little. >> i will. just slightly. >> viewers might remember the original hunk, lucky, who turned heads 30 years ago. coke says it's not about making men an object. but about female empowerment. >> it is about female empowerment, definitely. >> a piece of meat. >> i feel empowered now. >> i'm sure you feel many things. and finally, what may be the most uplifting thing you see all day. it comes from this youngster. he's known as kid president. >> ease the self-appointed voice of our children's generation.

and he has an important message. >> this is my time. it's our time. you can make every day better for each other. if we're all on the same team, let's start acting like it. we were made to be awesome. let's get out there. i don't know everything. i'm just a kid. but i do know this. get to it. >> all right, mr. kid president. he posts a new video every week. a great career ahead for that kid. for some of you, your local news is next. >> for everyone else, we'll be news is next. >> for everyone else, we'll be right back after this. . if you don't like that dark roast, we've created a coffee for you. blonde is a beautiful, light roasted coffee. kind of mellow, sweet, a little citrusy. for me, personally, i love connecting with people, so blonde roast just gives me a whole nother reason

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